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Jane Tyska Foe Art Michel Resigns -Oakland schools police chief leaving - Inside Bay Area

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More at Inside Bay Area : “OAKLAND — Art Michel, the Oakland school district police chief who detained a Tribune videographer last fall during a student protest, will leave the department this week, school district spokesman Troy Flint confirmed Tuesday. Flint would not give the reasons behind Michel's departure, saying that it was a personnel matter that had yet to be approved by the school board. But some familiar with the situation say the police chief's resignation might have been triggered — at least, in part — by concerns about compensation and benefits, rather than by his confrontation with photojournalist Jane Tyska on Oct. 31, which was captured on video. Michel retired from the Oakland Police Department as a sergeant in 2003 after 31 years of service. In 2007, he joined the newly resurrected Oakland school district force as a lieutenant and was promoted to interim chief in January 2008. But questions recently arose about Michel's employment in light of his retirem...
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Geoffrey's, a place to be and be seen, is closing - Inside Bay Area

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More at Inside Bay Area : “Geoffrey's Inner Circle, the popular black-owned and -operated nightclub in downtown Oakland, is closing. Owner Geoffrey Pete said little Tuesday other than he is transferring the lease to a church and a nonprofit. Pete has complained in the past, however, that police were unfairly targeting his night spot as well as other black-owned clubs downtown, many of which have closed in the past few years. Some of the clubs closed voluntarily or were pressured to do so by the city after crowds leaving the establishments were involved in fights, shootings and sideshows that resulted in injuries and death. Police said the incidents ate up overtaxed police resources as officers from beats around the city were called in to restore order and make arrests. Geoffrey's drew a mature, well-heeled crowd and had relatively few problems compared with other now-defunct nightclubs, such as Mingles and Sweet Jimmie's, but Oakland police Sgt. Kyle Thomas said that change...
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Nemekhbayer Gaitav, 42, found stabbed to death in Oakland apartment

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More at SFGate.com : “A man was found stabbed to death in downtown Oakland, police said today. Nemekhbayer Gaitav, 42, was found inside an apartment on the 1400 block of Jackson Street near Lake Merritt about 10 p.m. Monday, authorities said. He had been stabbed and was pronounced dead at the scene. No arrests have been made.”
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The Oakland BART Shooting By Police at Fruitvale Station Was A Deliberate Act

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The Oakland BART Police Fruitvale Station shooting was a horrifying act of an individual police officer that, upon reflection, went insane for a moment. I'm glad people had video cameras and used them. But I'm not happy with the state of the police in Oakland and the East Bay. What the officer did to young Oscar Grant was shameful. If you look at the videos, the officer first drags Grant over the station floor then positions him against the ground, and then pulls out his gun slowly then shoots him, but then looks up as if to say "Oh, that was an accident." It did not look that way. This should prompt a major investigation into how police are trained and the backgrounds and attitudes of the people that are recruited and how they're trained. There's something wrong and where there's smoke,there's fire. Now, Oakland Lawyer John Burris has introduced a $25 million lawsuit against the police department and BART, and given the look of the videos -- ther...
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BART / Oakland Police Shooting - A Very Angry Video

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Of all the videos I've seen on last New Year's Day Morning's shooting by the BART / Oakland Police at Fruitvale BART Station, this one is the first I've seen that expresses an urban anger that was not expressed before. The evidence is clear the officer directly shot Oscar Grant, even if it was by accident. I have to have a closer look at his actions -- if he reached for his gun and took it out deliberately, then it was not an accident. This is tragic.
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